First time buyers on fairly low incomes face quite a quandary these days when it comes to getting onto the property ladder. Not only are they faced with sky high property prices, which means having to take out a huge mortgage loan, but they also have to deal with increased interest rates and repayments on the huge loan.

With no equity from a previous property to rely on many first time buyers have little or nothing in the way of a deposit, which can simply add to the problem of getting a suitable mortgage loan. And for those that want to buy on their own the prospect of home ownership looks even more bleak, as even with lenders offering four or five times in terms if income multiples, those on fairly low incomes will still find that this will not get them a property in some areas.

As a result of these issues many first time buyers are now looking at shared ownership properties, which are offered by housing associations in the UK. Basically, a shared ownership property is where you take out a mortgage loan for a certain percentage of the property and pay rent on the remainder. The share that you purchase can vary, such as twenty five percent or fifty percent. The main benefit of shared ownership is that you will need a far smaller mortgage in order to get onto the property ladder, making it more viable for those on lower incomes who cannot get a mortgage to buy a property in the traditional way.

With shared ownership properties the buyer can 'staircase, which means that you can purchase further shares from the housing association as and when your situation improves until you own one hundred percent of the property. Some lenders that offer mortgage loans to those looking for shared ownership will also lend 100% of the amount needed to buy the share, so there is no problem when it comes to deposits.

It seems that with the housing situation the way that it is, and interest rates resulting in crippling repayments, many first time buyers that want to get onto the property ladder but cannot afford to take out such a large loan could find that this is a suitable and viable alternative.

Reno Charlton, award-winning writer, shares her financial expertise as a contributing columnist for Personal Loan Comparison Online, where you can compare secured loans.